with Janet’s The Paris Library/Photo: Krystal Kenney
Janet Skeslien Charles, author of Miss Morgan’s Book Brigade:
“I love libraries. They show what we are capable of and they show children what is possible.”
Having loved libraries growing up and then working in a bookstore at one point in my life, I’ve always felt that libraries and bookstores are very special places. They provide access to fascinating people and ideas as well as books about any and all curiosities.
With that interest, I eagerly interviewed international bestselling author Janet Skeslien Charles two years ago. She tapped into how the American Library in Paris stayed open during the barbaric times of World War II for her historical fiction novel, The Paris Library. That book was an instant New York Times bestseller.
Janet’s newest novel Miss Morgan’s Book Brigade features a changemaking librarian and enduring friendships against the backdrop of a turbulent time in Paris, France. It highlights women, as Janet says, “leaving their mark on history.” I wanted to follow up with Janet and her love of libraries, bookstores, anything books and more.
EYE: In our last interview you described what intrigues you about libraries:
Libraries today are about books, conversations, community, sources of news you can trust, and librarians who help fill out job applications as well as teach Adult 101 classes on everything from balancing a budget to sewing on a button. Each library is unique and serves the needs of its community.
How does that apply, or not, to Miss Morgan’s Book Brigade?
JANET: It does apply! In devastated France during World War I, bombs destroyed schools and homes. Of course, at that time, there was no radio or television. Books were really the only form of entertainment. So Jessie Carson’s libraries that I talk about in my new book were vital to the community.
According to a report from CARD, the American Committee of Devastated France, French children had “skin disease due to malnutrition or practical starvation… and curvature of the spine due to the fact that the Germans made them work in the fields and abandoned trenches.”
These children needed to learn how to laugh and play again. They needed the enjoyment and escape that only reading could bring.
EYE: How did you find this courageous librarian, Jessie Carson, and what was it about her that struck a chord with you?
JANET: While researching Dorothy Reeder, the librarian who stood up to the Nazis during World War II in The Paris Library, I discovered that earlier during the Great War, an American librarian named Jessie “Kit” Carson traveled to France, where she created something that did not yet exist there – children’s libraries. After the war, she transformed ambulances into bookmobiles. You can see why a booklover like me would be obsessed.
EYE: Why was it such a feat for Anne Morgan’s book brigade to start children’s libraries?
JANET: When Jessie “Kit” Carson arrived in France, libraries as we know them did not yet exist. There were no female librarians. Wealthy French people had private libraries and universities like the Sorbonne had scholarly libraries for male students.
Here is how French writer André Chevrillon described the situation: “One must not think the American Committee introduced public libraries in France. There are some in cities and villages. But they do not meet the needs of the community; they are incomplete and badly organized; most are in small rooms, badly kept, and poorly lit.
Readers are forbidden free access to the shelves. Entrance is prohibited to the reader, who is invited to stand behind a railing. The public can only make the choice of a book by consulting a dirty, torn catalogue. Librarians are clerks with no professional training and who are so overworked that they can bring but little vitality and interest.”
Jessie Carson evaluated the situation, stepped up to the challenge and trained the first French female librarians. She noted, “It is not hard to find good students, but it is very hard to convince the parents that their children should study library methods and help create a new career.”
EYE: In your research for Miss Morgan’s Book Brigade, did you find anything that surprised you?
JANET: When I began the book, I didn’t expect to write about a disappointment at work that Jessie Carson faced. A visit to The Morgan Library, where I read the CARD correspondence, quickly showed the points of tension and inner workings of the group.
We tend to idealize the past, and we tend to think that during that war, people work together for the greater good. But no matter the era or the job, there are frustrations and disappointments. It’s how we deal with those setbacks that is important.
EYE: Since establishing the novel idea of children’s libraries in France during this tumultuous time, the year 1918 is a major historical part of your story. What did you find that might still be important today about what libraries and children’s bookstores can offer children?
JANET: I love libraries. Growing up in rural Montana, they were a refuge and a revelation. I still remember the kindness and encouragement of the librarians. Finding short biographies of Eleanor Roosevelt and Marie Curie, books that show young girls what women can do, was fantastic.
EYE: At The Red Wheelbarrow, the Paris bookstore which you are involved with, there are actually two bookstores, the main one and a children’s bookstore. What experiences do the children enjoy in those bookstores?
JANET: The Red Wheelbarrow has an excellent selection of books for children. There is something for everyone. It is a haven for children, who are able to browse and enjoy. I invested in the bookstore because I believe in the proprietor Penelope Fletcher.
EYE: On the topic of libraries, since summer is a great time to travel, do you have recommendations for great libraries anyone should visit?
JANET: Readers should get their library cards wherever they live and use their libraries! My sister uses her library card for audio books to listen to on her daily commute to work.
I would definitely put the Franco-Museum of Blérancourt on your bucket list. Just 90 minutes from Paris, it is the perfect day trip – a fabulous meal on the terrasse of Le Griffon, then a visit to the museum and botanical garden. Inside the museum, you can see the library that Jessie Carson created for children, as well as short films featuring the women who helped rebuild northern France.
EYE: In addition to your wonderful Miss Morgan’s Book Brigade, what books can you recommend to readers in their spare time this summer?
JANET: I’m looking forward to reading Brooke Lea Foster’s latest novel All the Summers in Between and The Lost Legacy of Gabriel Tucci by Joan Mora. I love Joan and Brooke’s work and am excited to read their latest novels.
EYE: Finally, I understand that Miss Morgan’s Book Brigade is the second in a trilogy with real librarians in central roles. Would you give TWE a hint at the final book in the trilogy and when it might come out?
JANET: I am hoping that the new book will be out in the autumn of 2025. The novella – set in a library in Paris during the 1990s – connects my books, The Paris Library and Miss Morgan’s Book Brigade. My characters Lily and Wendy meet, and unlike my last two novels set in France, no one dies. It is always hard for me to kill off characters, and I’m happy that this novella has a lighter tone. I can’t wait for you to read it!
EYE: Thank you so much for your time amidst a very busy schedule, Janet. TWE congratulates you on another terrific story and we are looking forward to your next!
Connect with Janet:
Website: jskesliencharles.com
Facebook: Janet Skeslien Charles- Author
Instagram: @jskesliencharles
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